


here, beside me

by Liberte_Egalite_Broadway



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: Angst, Other, Sharing a Bed, Sleepy Cuddles, buddy knows what's up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-31
Updated: 2019-08-31
Packaged: 2020-10-03 19:56:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20458586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liberte_Egalite_Broadway/pseuds/Liberte_Egalite_Broadway
Summary: Buddy had a bad habit of putting Juno into inconvenient situations. Today, that meant being in a hotel room with Peter Nureyev and one bed.





	here, beside me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [noodl_eboy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/noodl_eboy/gifts).

> this fic is dedicated to my darling Robin, based on some headcanons we had about these two, and also some of the things I've been feeling about them recently. 
> 
> TW for referenced gun violence

It wasn't the first uncomfortable mission Buddy sent them on. Juno once had to be a waiter in spite of zero restaurant experience, and another time he had to rappel out of a moving helicopter. Their ship's captain gets a little intense sometimes. But this, he could do. Of course. 

The heist: Alexander and Gaia Pride, eccentric trillionaires, attended a conference held in the meeting room of an upscale hotel. When Alexander unfortunately took ill and had to head out early, Gaia obviously went with him. Then Peter Nureyev and Juno Steel had their pickings of rich people's empty hotel rooms, and Rita had her way with the security system from afar. Easy job. In and out. There was only the minor complication that Juno had been shot in the process. 

The problem was that before they could rejoin the rest of the team in the morning, Buddy booked them an overnight room in a different, decidedly _not_ upscale hotel. It was a shitty hotel. And that meant a two-person room had only one bed.

Juno hadn't actually gone into the hotel room yet. He sat outside on one of the armchairs in their floor's elevator lobby, flicking through his comms, killing time. Maybe if he stayed there long enough Nureyev would be asleep by the time he got to the room. Maybe they wouldn't have to talk through any of the uncomfortable, inevitable stuff that came with the fact that Juno had walked out on Nureyev the last time they shared a bed. Maybe. The only problem was that he couldn't keep his eyes open. 

Finally he got up, put his comms away, and staggered into his - their - hotel room. With dismay, but not surprise, he realized that Nureyev was still awake. He sat up against something that was apparently supposed to be the headboard, reading a magazine. In a plain chemise, without glasses or makeup, he looked more vulnerable somehow. "There you are," he said, not glancing up from the book in his hands. "Comms chargers are on the far wall, if you need one." 

"Thanks." Juno eyed the bed awkwardly. "Listen -"

"I'm going to sleep." Nureyev shut his book, set it down, and reached over to turn of the bedside lamp. "Good night." 

The room went dark. Juno stood awkwardly for a moment. Eventually he shrugged off his coat and jacket, stepped out of his jeans and crawled into the other side of the bed. Even in a t-shirt and boxers he felt extremely exposed. A quick glance over his shoulder confirmed that Nureyev was facing away from him. He tried not to think about the last time they'd shared a bed, curled close, warm from the sex, comfortable together. Now there might as well be an ocean between them.

He wasn't sure how long he lay awake. His fingertips probed at the place where the laser bolt had grazed his side earlier. It was a light scratch. Nothing a little rubbing alcohol and an ice pack couldn't fix. He could deal with it. 

He heard the blankets shuffling behind him. Nureyev's voice, sounding almost small somehow: "Juno?"

"Yeah?"

"You're... not hurt, are you?" 

"Nah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"Ah. Good night, then."

"Good night."

And then more silence. 

Juno wanted to reach into the space between that silence; he wanted to just reach out into that vast infinitude between them and grab at anything, at words, at the thief's hand, he wanted to be near to him and feel his breathing and -

"Juno?"

Oh. "Yeah?"

"Can you... can I move closer to you?"

His pulse leapt. "Yeah, yeah of course you can."

Nureyev scooted a little closer, the mattress dipping and shifting as he did. Juno felt the blanket rustle around him, and then felt the warmth of another person's body close to his as they got settled again. They weren't touching, but they were getting close to it. "I was... very worried about you." He felt the blanket twist as Nureyev fidgeted with them. "It was just that, at first, when I saw the blast, I couldn't tell if you'd been hurt or not."

"Yeah. Well, I, I mean I'm okay, so, yeah."

"Ah."

"Yep." Juno nodded as if that would actually mean anything. "Yeah. I mean, it would have looked pretty bad for the job, too. If your wife just got shot on you." 

"Yes. We're supposed to be married." Nureyev hesitated. "Could I -"

"Yeah go ahead." He paused when he realized he hadn't actually allowed Nureyev to answer the question. "With - whatever."

Juno'd half-hoped that the thief would move closer to him, but that didn't mean he was actually prepared for it. When the thief's arm slung gently over his waist, he could have sworn that his soul actually left his body a little bit. Juno moved closer, rolling over so he could press his face into Nureyev's chest. He smelled good. He felt like coming home. And now there wasn't a distance between them anymore. 

"This really doesn't hurt?" the thief asked, his slender fingertips slipping into Juno's shirt and grazing over the bare skin where the laser bolt had nicked him. 

"No. It's fine." Juno shivered a little. "Don't stop..."

Nureyev's hand went still at that. He waited a long moment before wrapping his other arm around Juno. "This doesn't mean I trust you yet," he said as he adjusted the blankets to be more comfortable. Smoothing back Juno's hair, he added, "really. It's because we're acting as a married couple."

"Right." Juno didn't mention that there was no one to act for, just tangled their legs together. "Totally. I get that." He settled into Nureyev's arms and closed his eyes. "Still, though. It's kind of nice."

"Go to sleep, Juno."

"Sure. Night."

"Good night."

He tilted his face against Nureyev's chest and let himself relax. Wrapped up here against him, it was almost impossible not to feel soothed, to feel the physical testament that the distance between them was gone. He felt his mind slowly drift, until then he didn't feel anything, and his breathing lulled into sleep. 

Nureyev pressed his cheek to the top of Juno's head and exhaled. "Of course I still love you," he whispered. 


End file.
